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Beef Up Apple's Spaces with Hyperspaces

The addition of Spaces to Mac OS in 10.5 officially added virtual desktops to the Mac. Now that working in multiple desktops was part of Mac OS, many Mac users started using them and some wanted even more: they wanted the ability to set individual desktops for each workspace and the ability to quickly move between them. With Hyperspaces, you can take control over the look and feel of Apple's Spaces and customize them to fit the way you work with your Mac.

Apple's Spaces does a good job of giving you a way to manage multiple workspaces. For example, I keep one desktop specifically for all of my work-related apps, another for Web browsing and downloads, and another for personal apps like IM and Twitter. This way I can switch between desktops when I'm switching mindsets; if I want to focus on a specific task, I move over to the work desktop and I don't look back. Even so, it would be helpful to have an easier way to preview what's happening on a specific desktop, or give my desktops individual names and labels. Hyperspaces can help.

Hyperspaces isn't free; you can download a free demo to get a feel for the features but a full license will cost you $12.95. The demo also only allows you to customize two virtual desktops; for more you'll have to open your wallet. You'll need a Mac running OS 10.5.4 to run Hyperspaces, but the app comes in a universal binary, which means it runs on both modern Intel Macs and older PowerPC-based systems.

Once you have Hyperspaces installed and running, you can set into customizing your virtual desktops to suit your needs. You can give each desktop a name and label, and you can tell Hyperspaces to display that label prominently on your desktop or in the menubar so you know which desktop you're moving to before you switch. You can also set individual backgrounds for each virtual desktop, so you can keep that Zen-inspired rock garden for your work desktop and use your favorite video game wallpaper for your personal one.

Hyperspaces adds a widget to your menubar that allows you to visually preview and select virtual desktops. The app also allows you to set up hotkeys for specific virtual desktops so you can switch directly to them without going through other workspaces first. You can also use Hyperspaces to add and remove desktops quickly if you need more workspaces.

Hyperspaces doesn't do anything drastically different with Apple's Spaces, but it does completely transform the way you use them. Some of Hyperspaces' features are so strong, I expect Apple to incorporate them in future versions of Mac OS. In the meantime however, if you're looking for a way to add functionality to Spaces, give the demo a try. If you're absolutely dependant on Spaces to get your work done, skip the demo and buy a license.

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